Here are a few ways to make the Valley’s air quality challenges better
On the worst days, there’s a toilet bowl ring of smog around the Las Vegas Valley. You may not notice it if you spend most of your time in the center of town: When you’re in the mix, you can rarely see it. But if you venture to the edge of town and find a good view, you probably won’t like what you see. Fortunately, the smog doesn’t appear every day. But it comes often enough — especially when the air is hot and calm — that Clark County received poor marks from American Lung Association State of the Air 2018 report this spring. Here’s what you need to know about air pollution, how to protect yourself and more.
What is particle pollution?
It’s everything that’s suspended in the air, solid and/or liquid. Also known as “particulate matter,” it can include dust, pollen, mold, dirt, soot, smoke, sulfuric acid and a variety of compounds and chemicals, such as sodium chloride and ammonium nitrate.
Problem particles: The clouds of yellow pollen falling from trees in the spring would count as particulate matter that’s big enough to see. But the smallest stuff is actually the most harmful to your health. Some particles are so small they’re effectively invisible (you’d need an electron microscope to detect them). Because they’re so tiny, they can bypass the body’s Ozone: F grade
Particle Pollution 24-hour: C grade
12 of 227 metropolitan areas for high ozone days
24 of 187 metro areas for annual particle pollution
46 of 201 metro areas for 24-hour particle pollution
For the complete list, visit the American Lung Association study at tinyurl.com/ ybyqqpll
physical defenses (such as nose hairs) and enter the lungs and even the heart.
Where it comes from: Everywhere. It can come from driving on unpaved roads, constructing a building or cooking. Even dusting sends particles into the air. Another type of pollution, called secondary particles, occurs when the various stuff in the air interacts with each other while floating around the atmosphere— think of car exhaust interacting with the emissions from a factory or power plant.
Health dangers: Fine particles can affect both the respiratory and cardiovascular systems (causing heart failure, strokes, asthma attacks, coughing and more). The problems are more pronounced with the very young and very old, as well as those who already have health problems.
The body’s defenses: The lungs have a self-cleaning system called “mucociliary clearance,” which is the fancy way of describing all the muck you cough up in the morning. If you’re healthy, your body will clear most of the pollution from your body within 24 hours. The problem is when you have underlying health problems, which impede the clearance.
Do we meet government standards?
“By federal, health-based standards, Clark County is in attainment for all criteria pollutants,” Clark County Department of Air Quality spokesperson Kevin Macdonald said. “Simply put, the air we breathe is safe and poses no immediate risks with regard to the six criteria pollutants we monitor, including ozone, at this time.”
Why is our air problematic?
Little rain to “scrub” the air.
We rely on wind to blow it away. When there’s no wind, it festers.
Lots of heat and sunshine.
The Vegas Valley is like a bowl where the smog sits in the center.
Smoke from wildfires and smog drifts in from California.
What is ozone?
How is it that a hole in the ozone layer is bad, but then having too much ozone in the air is also bad? Well, it depends on its